Safe in God's Hands

 Then the devil took him to the holy city and

placed him on the pinnacle of the temple saying to him,

“If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written,

‘He will command his angels concerning you,’

and ‘On their hands they will bear you up,

so that you will not dash your foot against a stone

What sort of place comes to mind when you imagine a wilderness? 

A dry and weary place, an inner, personal space of hardship?

It's comforting to imagine a wilderness this way because we can then place our trust and hope in Jesus who experienced this type of wilderness.

Living in the Poconos as I do, the wilderness is more for recreation so placing hope and trust in Jesus is far from the need for placing hope and trust in the Israelite wilderness.

The Israelites’ wilderness was a place of survival testing.

As their journey went from generation to generation, they had to continue to build on their hope and trust.

It is this same trust and hope that is tested in Jesus’s own wilderness story.

Jesus is tempted by food, by who to worship, and by the power of the nations and shows the path to righteousness as he resists Satan’s temptations.

Jesus’ trust and hope came from the scriptures based on God’s promises in Deuteronomy.

As followers of Jesus, we can expect temptations to distract us from doing the work of a disciple.

Our trust and hope are anchored in the promises of God, especially as we navigate moments of suffering and trials.

Just as Jesus confronted temptation, we too are invited to place our confidence in God’s faithfulness.

Its is God’s Word that sustains as we wait for the fulfillment of God, s kingdom.

God's Got Your Back

 

And he was transfigured before them,

and his face shone like the sun,

and his clothes became bright as light.

(From Matthew 17:1-9)

For years, Elaine and I made a pilgrimage to Southwest Harbor, a little village in Acadia National Park.

We “soaked in God” in quiet moments: sitting on sun-warmed rocks, awe inspired watching sunlight glitter across the breaking waves, and the endless blue.

We “soaked in God” hiking, walking Carriage Roads and climbing mountains with awe views of the harbors and coastline.

During our stay at our cottage, we made friends with a lobsterman, housekeeping staff, and manager so We visited together, shared meals, of fresh lobster rolls or fish chowder.

As time passed travel became difficult, our routine changed, because we could no longer travel that distance to Acadia.

Understanding Matthew’s Gospel means knowing what was going on at the time.

The synagogues were experiencing arguments about membership and worries about the Roman Empire: A sort of “fighting’s and fears, within, without,” as the old hymn says.

People were losing confidence in the coming of Christ and drifting away.

 Matthew’s transfiguration story is meant as an assurance that Jesus will return and complete the work he has started.

Peter’s declaration that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God even when you doubt, hold on God’s promises are real and a new beginning coming.

God’s got your back.

Just as God was faithful to Jesus along the rough road to the cross, God is faithful to us no matter what we face, on our journey.

Maybe it's job loss, health, doubting our faith, feeling alone. or hope feeling distant.

Listen to Jesus, trust that God keeps promises, and don’t stop, even if the journey is tough.

There’s a reason to hope and a light ahead, no matter how rough the road feels right now.